Abstract
As racial inequities continue to pervade school systems around the world, further research is necessary to understand the factors undergirding this pressing issue. Here across three studies conducted in the United States (N = 8,293), we provide evidence that race-based differences in student achievement do not stem from a lack of motivation among Black, Latinx and Indigenous (BLI) students, but a lack of equitable motivational payoff. Even when BLI and non-BLI students have the same levels of motivation, BLI students still receive maths grades that are an average of 9% lower than those of their non-BLI peers (95% confidence interval 7 to 11%). This pattern was not explained by differences in students’ aptitude, effort or prior achievement but was instead linked to teachers’ diminished expectations for their BLI students’ academic futures. We conclude by discussing statistical power limitations and the implications of the current findings for how researchers consider the sources of, and solutions for, educational inequity.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 515-528 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Nature human behaviour |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Apr 2023 |
Funding
We would like to thank I. A. Hernandez and D. C. Molden for providing valuable feedback throughout our work on the project. This research was supported by the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program (no. DGE-1842165, D.M.S.), Joyce Foundation (grant number 16-37550, C.S.H. and Y.T.) and National Science Foundation (grant number EHR 2000507, C.S.H. and Y.T.). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Behavioral Neuroscience